Happy Birthday
by lovesbitch4spike
Summary: Spike stops by unexpectedly for Buffy's birthday party. Too say much more would give away the whole plot. Tara/Spike and Willow/Buffy interactions.
1. Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday

Description: Buffy fic with an emphasis on Buffy and Spike.

Disclaimer: The characters from Buffy are not mine, sadly. They belong to the good people at Fox, the WB, UPN and of course the God of all things Buffy, Joss Whedon.

Spoilers: For everything that has happened on Buffy thus far, through season six, episode Dead Things. The only spoilers for the episode Birthday are entirely from the preview.

Rated: R

*************************************

Buffy greeted Spike at the door.

"I don't remember inviting you to my birthday party," Buffy said.

"Well no, but I assumed it would be alright, me being an unofficial Scooby and all that," Spike replied, "among other things."

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Come in. So, what did you get me?" she asked.

"Nothing."

"Nothing? You come uninvited to a Birthday party and you don't even bring a gift?"

Spike put a hand on his heart. "There is nothing I could give you that you don't already have," he told her, suddenly serious. "Oh, and I brought beer."

Buffy wrinkled her nose. She had had a series of bad experiences with alcohol. "You planning to get me drunk and take advantage of me?"

"No," he answered, "didn't figure I'd need to get you drunk first."

Buffy grabbed the beer, holding it between the two of them. "I better go put this in the fridge."

Spike followed her into he kitchen. He lowered his voice. "So, will you be coming by tonight?"

"No," Buffy answered firmly, closing the refrigerator door and straightening to face him. Her resolve melted as she met his gaze. Those blue eyes of his had a way of boring into her soul. He always saw through her defenses. Why could he do that when no one else could? He knew her real answer before she even said it. "Well, maybe. I don't know if I can get away."

"What? Don't tell me you never used to sneak out when your mum wasn't looking. Do you need an added incentive?"

He moved closer to her, placing his hands on her shoulders and toying with the fabric of her top. The cat liked to play with the mouse, but in the end it was the mouse who always pounced.

Buffy grabbed hold of him and began kissing him passionately. His hand slipped up her shirt, driving her crazy and making her want him the more.

"Ahem." Tara cleared her throat behind them.

The couple sprang apart.

"Er, Tara," Spike began, "this isn't . . . I mean she wasn't . . . it was me, I . . ."

"It's ok Spike, she knows," Buffy told him.

"You know?" he asked the Wiccan. "How do you know?"

"I told her," Buffy explained.

"What?!" Spike was furious. "You threaten to kill me if I so much as breathe a word, and then you go and spill to your girl friends. Why even bother threatening me if you were planning to tell?"

"Planning to tell what?" Xander asked. He walked into the kitchen followed by the other Scoobies. "What's with all the yelling in here?"

"I was just planning to tell Buffy 'happy birthday' is all," Spike started to cover. His first thought was to protect Buffy. Then another thought took its place. Why bother? They would all find out sooner or later, and he would prefer it to be at his hands than at Buffy's. He was tired of being her little dark secret. He turned to her. "Happy birthday lover," he told her, kissing her roughly, so as to make it perfectly clear that he had kissed her many times before.

Buffy pushed him away, clearly horrified. "I don't believe you," she spat at him. Tara looked equally shocked.

"Now they all know. Dust me if you want, Luv."

"We all know what?" Xander continued to be confused. "What the Hell is going on."

Tears sprung into Buffy's eyes. "I hate you," she told him, and fled the room.

"Buffy!" Willow cried out, chasing after her.

"Why can't you leave her alone?" Xander demanded. "Just get it through your head already. She's not your girl. You're never going to have her."

"That's where you're wrong. She is my girl, and I've already had her, many times."

Dawn's eyes got wide. "Oh my god."

"You're a liar, and you know what? I don't even care." Xander gripped Spike by the throat. "You should have been staked long ago. Just because Buffy isn't willing to, doesn't mean that I wont." He produced a stake from his pocket.

"You're a bloody idiot. Where do you think she's been spending all her time, church group? You walked in on us for fuck's sake!"

"He's t-telling the t-truth Xander," Tara said. "P-p-put the stake down."

"No," Xander replied, shooting Spike a look of pure venom. "Not this time."

Spike knocked the stake out of Xander's hand and hit him, hard enough to send him flying but light enough not to cause any permanent damage. "Aaaggghhhh. Sodding chip!" Spike grabbed his head. "Sorry Bit," he added through clenched teeth, before making a break for the door.

"M-make sure Xander's ok," Tara told Dawn. She ran outside, attempting to catch up with the blond vampire. She accomplished the task quite easily, for Spike was still in a good deal of pain, causing him to move sluggishly.

"Spike, w-wait up!"

"Come to stake me too?" he asked.

"I want to help. S-spike, you shouldn't have done that."

"What should I have done, then? Let her treat me like dirt for the rest of my bloody unlife? Have you any idea what it's like to hold someone in your arms one moment, and tell you you're the most despicable thing in the world mere seconds later?"

"N-no, I guess I don't," Tara admitted.

"It's maddening. I couldn't any longer. I just . . . she'll hate me and she'll leave me, but at least I'll know where I stand."

"I'm sorry about what you've gone through, but I know that Buffy cares for you. Maybe if you two talked—"

"I've tried that. It's no good. Buffy doesn't talk, she punches and runs."

"Looks like she has company," Tara teased.

Spike grew concerned. "Xander! I didn't hurt him too badly, did I?"

"He's still conscience, and Dawn's looking after him. He'll be fine."

"Good. He's a bit of a wanker, but I wouldn't want to off him. Too much personal history for that."

Tara gave him a shy smile. "Are *you* going to be alright?"

"Probably not, but that's what I deserve, innit?" Spike asked her, only half kidding. "Me being an evil monster and all?"

"You're not a monster," Tara said. "I mean maybe you were before, but you don't have to be if you don't want to."

"Why are you being so nice to me?" Spike asked.

"Because I care about you. Buffy too. I just want you both to be happy."

"Thanks."

"If you need a friend, come and talk to me. Just try to think first and it later, ok?" She gently hugged the vampire.

Spike hugged her back. "Sure thing, little witch."

* * *

Buffy's entire world had been shattered around her in one foul swoop. They would never look at her the same way now. And how was she ever supposed to face Spike again? They could never go back to the way things had been.

Buffy went by his crypt later that night. He was waiting outside, smoking a cigarette. When he noticed her approaching, he flicked the butt away, crushing it with his foot.

"Why?" she asked.

"Because someone had to."

"Spike . . ." Buffy began. She couldn't finish. She went up to him and kissed him tenderly, savoring the feel and taste of his mouth. Then she pulled away.

"It's over," she told him. "Goodbye."


	2. Valentines Day

Valentine's Day

Description: Buffy fic with an emphasis on Buffy and Spike.

Disclaimer: The characters from Buffy are not mine, sadly. They belong to the good people at Fox, the WB, UPN and of course the God of all things Buffy, Joss Whedon.

Spoilers: For everything that has happened on Buffy thus far, through season six, episode Dead Things. The only spoilers for the episode Birthday are entirely from the preview. Sequel to the fic "Happy Birthday."

Rated: R

*************************************

Buffy had one hot date for Valentine's Day, Willow. The two girls were sitting in front of the television, decked out in their PJ's. Willow's had Snoopy on them, while Buffy's had stars. Between them, a bowl of popcorn was slowly being devoured. They were watching a selection of action movies. The duo had gone to the video store with one goal in mind, rent movies that contained ass kicking and as little romance as possible.

"Wow, look at that house explode," Willow commented.

"Kinda reminds me of that time we blew up the school," Buffy mumbled absentmindedly.

"This is nice," Willow said. "We should do this more often."

"Definitely," Buffy agreed. "Wanna paint nails?" she held up a bottle of polish. "Look, sparkles."

"Oooooh, pretty." Willow opened the bottle and started applying some shimmery pink to Buffy's toenails. "This is the best Valentine's Day ever!"

"Yeah it is."

"I'm gonna add little flowers, ok?"

Buffy nodded. Willow continued the painting a moment in silence.

"Are you feeling as miserable as I am right now?" Buffy asked her.

"More so. I can't help but miss Tara." She remembered something that Oz had told her once. "It's like I've lost an arm." The thought of Oz added to her sadness. He was yet another person she loved and missed dreadfully.

"I know what you mean." The familiar emptiness had returned after her break up with Spike. What's worse there was no longer a release. Every part of her body and soul ached for his touch. She pushed the thought away and looked through the polishes. "Whadda you think about teal?"

"It's pretty."

Buffy began doing Willow's toes. "Have you two talked at all, since . . ."

"A few times, but it's always been really forced. I think you've probably seen more of her than I have."

"Give her time," Buffy told her. "She's bound to come around."

"And if not?"

"Then you'll be strong. I know you can be. We both can be strong."

"We're two single, attractive women, we should be embracing our freedom!" Willow boldly stated.

"We should. No one to tie us down, a world of possibilities out there, what are we waiting for?"

Buffy and Willow locked eyes. They leaned into each other and kissed.

"Did that do anything for you?" Buffy asked.

"Not really," Willow answered. "You?"

"Nope."

"You do have a very strong tongue though," Willow pointed out. "It'd be very useful for . . . changing the subject because I've wandered into that scary, sharing too much information zone."

Buffy had to laugh.

"Do you miss Spike?" Willow asked.

"Like crazy," Buffy confessed. "I know that I shouldn't. I mean, I should be glad it's over."

"Do you love him?" Willow asked.

"What did we say? No mention of the L-word. We were gonna have an L-word free Valentine's Day!"

"You're avoiding the question," Willow pointed out.

"What I feel doesn't matter. I can't be with an evil vampire. Been there, done that. It only leads to trouble, not to mention mass destruction."

"Uh, Buffy," Willow said, "I never thought I'd ever say this, but maybe you should give Spike a chance. I mean, yeah he tried to kill us all. He nearly did kill me several times. But that was ages ago. And he's been really good about not eating people lately, and he's always been extremely anti-apocalypse. Me, I messed up and now I have to deal with the consequences. But Spike still wants you. If you love him, you should be with him."

Buffy was surprised. "You wouldn't think I was a horrible person?"

"Nah, you saving my life so much has kinda made me a little biased." The red-head gave her a warm smile.

Buffy mulled over the moments she and Spike had shared: the laughter, the pain and the pleasure. "Maybe I will, you know, give it another chance."

"What are you waiting for then? Scoot!" Willow gave Buffy a playful shove.

"But what about you? I mean, its Valentine's Day, you shouldn't be all alone."

"I already got to make out with one hot blond tonight," Willow told her, giving her a wink, "that's something. Plus I've got Cliffhanger to keep me company."

Buffy gave her a hug. "Wish me luck." She paused on her way out the door. "You know you're a very good kisser, Will."

* * *

Buffy reached Spike's crypt and hesitated at the door. She hadn't seen him since the night and was scared of how he would react.

The door opened. He had sensed her presence while she stood outside stalling.

"I was wondering when you'd come by again," he said. "Come in."

"Spike, I . . ."

"Look, I'm not exactly in a chatty mood, alright? These are yours." He handed her a box filled with little mementos of their affair. Her pictures from his shrine were inside, as well as her sweater, a bra, some candles, a pair of handcuffs and several love poems he had written for her. "I don't really care to have them around me any longer. Do what you want with them."

Buffy accepted the box, her heart breaking. She'd blown it. They were really over. She decided to make one blind stab at rekindling their flame. "I don't suppose it would make a difference if I told you I loved you?"

Spike's face was unreadable. "No, it wouldn't."

Buffy nodded. "Goodbye then."

Spike did not even bother to bid her farewell. He simply ushered her outside, closing the door behind her.

Buffy took three steps before dropping the box and falling to her knees, sobbing. Why had she put off her decision for so long? Only days earlier, he would have been delighted to hear her proclamation. Buffy was just hopeless when it came to men, she decided. Yes, the Slayer was doomed to live her life alone.

Strong hands wrapped around her. "Shhh, it'll be alright Buffy." She buried her face in Spike's shirt. "Stop that. You know it kills me to see you cry."

That only made Buffy sob harder.

"Don't be like that. Look, you want to talk, we'll talk."

Buffy gasped for breath. "I miss you."

"I miss you too Pet, but it isn't enough. Ten more minutes alone with me and you'll be wanting me to go away again, the evil influence that I am."

"That's not true. I've been thinking things over and I want us to be together. Really together."

Spike was impressed. "And the others?"

Buffy laughed from behind the tears. "Xander will probably have to go into intensive therapy for a few years, Tara and Willow are fine with it and Dawn already mad at me. My having a vampire boyfriend won't make a significant difference in that."

Spike sat and thought about it. "I might be willing to give it a chance. But only if you are sure that's what you want?"

"Of course I'm sure. I love you."

"Do you?"

"I wouldn't say I did if I didn't."

"Can't blame me for asking, you are quite the fickle one." He flashed her one of his trademark grins. "Just don't break my heart luv. I know it doesn't beat, but it works just as well as anyone else's."

"I won't, at least I'll try not to. Don't you break my heart either."

"Deal."

Buffy's make up was smudged from the crying, her hair was in disarray and her eyes were puffy, but Spike thought she had never looked more beautiful. He spent the rest of the night just sitting there, holding her.


End file.
